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Crystal Night Redux
Holocaust. For example, the pervasive
use of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion
with its perennial theme of the "Jewish
n Nov. 9, 1938, a massive
conspiracy for world domination"; or
nationwide anti-Jewish
the medieval blood-libel imported
pogrom took place during
to the Muslim world from Christian
peacetime across the entire territory of
the Third Reich. The pretext for this orgy Europe; or the vile stereotypical image
of the Jews as a treacherous, rapacious
of violence against German Jews was
and bloodthirsty people
the shooting in Paris two
engaged in a ceaseless plot-
days earlier of German
ting to undermine the world
diplomat Ernst vom Rath
of Islam. To these grotesque
by Herschel Grynszpan, a
inventions one must add such
17-year-old Polish-Jewish
more up-to-date libels like
refugee.
Holocaust denial, which has
The state-organized
become
a state-sponsored
pogrom, instigated by
project
in
Ahmadinejad's Iran
Adolph Hitler and Joseph
and
is
increasingly
pervasive
Goebbels, resulted in the
in
the
Arab
world.
burning or damaging of
Robert S.
Equally fashionable (and
more than 1,000 syna-
. Wistrich
increasingly
popular in
gogues, the ransacking of
Special
Europe)
is
the
slanderous
about 7,500 businesses, the
Commentary
identification
of
Israel with
murder of at least 91 Jews
Nazism
or
the
"ethnic
cleans-
and the deportation of
ing"
of
the
Palestinians.
another 30,000 Jewish males to concen-
The scale and extremism of the lit-
tration camps in Dachau, Buchenwald
erature
and commentary available in
and Sachsenhausen.
Arab
or
Muslim newspapers, journals,
This murderous onslaught against
magazines,
caricatures, on Islamist Web
German Jewry, cynically described by
sites,
on
the
Middle Eastern radio and
the Nazis as the"Night of Broken Glass"
TV
news,
in
documentaries, films and
(Kristallnacht), was a major turning
educational
materials,
is comparable
point on the road to the "Final Solution"
only
to
that
of
Nazi
Germany
at its
of the so-called "Jewish Question:'
worst.
Yet
the
Western
world
largely
It signified that the Nazi regime had
crossed a Rubicon and would no longer turns a blind eye to the likely geno-
cidal consequences of such a culture of
be deterred by Western public opinion
hatred,
much as it did 70 years ago.
in its "war against the Jews:'
My
own
extensive research into
The economic expropriation of
this
phenomenon
has, unfortunately,
German Jewry, its complete social ostra-
convinced
me
that
the Holocaust did
cism and public humiliation swiftly
not
truly
succeed
in
neutralizing the
followed. Jews were banned from public
scourge
of
anti-Semitism.
In a sinister
transport, from frequenting concerts,
and
sometimes
devious
manner,
the
theaters, cinemas, commercial centers
widespread
defamation
and
demoniza-
and beaches or using public benches.
tion of Israel has in effect revived fanta-
Only a fortnight after "Crystal Night','
sies of completing the murderous work
Das
Schwarze
Korps
the SS journal
of the Third Reich. This is especially
chillingly prophesied the final end of
German Jewry through "fire and sword" palpable in the case of Iran.
Hence, the anniversary of "Crystal
and its imminent complete annihilation.
Today, shocking to relate, the specter Night" raises two fundamental moral
questions for the future of human
of such apocalyptic anti-Semitism has
civilization. Are we at all capable of
returned to haunt Europe and other
continents, while often assuming radi- learning from history and will the
Jewish people once again have to stand
cally new forms. In the Middle East, it
has taken on a particularly dangerous, alone in the face of concrete threats to
toxic and potentially genocidal aura of annihilate it?
hatred, closely linked to the "mission"
Professor Robert S. Wistrich is director of
of holy war or jihad against the West
the Vidal Sassoon International Center for
and the Jews.
the Study of Anti-Semitism at the Hebrew
Islamist anti-Semitism is thoroughly
University of Jerusalem (http://sicsa.huji.
soaked in many of the most inflam-
ac.il/) and the author of "A Lethal Obsession:
matory themes that initially made
possible the atrocities of "Crystal Night" Anti-Semitism from Antiquity to the Global
Jihad" (Random House, January 2010).
and its horrific aftermath during the
Jerusalem
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